MYS 2018: Sarp Yachts on Investment in Turkey

As well as managing Sarp Yachts, Emre is also President at Antalya Free Zone Business Association, and started by telling us a little about this. The Association consists of numerous companies from the medical, electronic and yachting industries of the Antalya Zone, Turkey, and has a close relationship with the the region's authorities. "We agreed with them to set up a new facility in the Free Zone with an area for new shipyards," Emre shared.

The organisation plans on investing $14 million in the area, as well as purchasing a synchro lift with a 2000 tonne capacity. This will mean that the Free Zone's capacity for shipbuilding will extend to 90m, Emre tells us: "Previously we could only build up to the 63m mark, when we complete this investment Antalya Free Zone will be one of the biggest areas for fitting yachts up to 90m."

The development of shipbuilding in Turkey could not come at a better time, due to the highly competitive prices available on the market due to the relatively weak position of the Turkish Lira. "If you are making money in Euros or Dollars, you have a great opportunity to invest into Turkey," Emre explains, "This is a great chance for potential owners and investors to buy the best quality boats at good prices."

Sarp Yachts are currently working on a design project in Barcelona, Nacre, which was originally intended to be a 55m but was extended to 60. The hull guest block is reportedly completed, with work now being carried out on the crew side and completion due in 2021."The process is going very well," Emre assures us.

As to the future? Asides from the 60m Nacre, also in the pipelines is the XSR series, a range of hybrid propulsion superyachts that aim to make passengers feel "as though they are in nature". The completion of these are a few years away, Emre tells us, but in terms of the present, he is involved in talks with clients that he hopes will come to fruition...